Hugo Besson
Hugo Besson (born 26 April 2001) is a French professional basketball player for Openjobmetis Varese of the Lega Basket Serie A (LBA). He debuted in the LNB Pro A in 2018 with Élan Chalon. After two seasons with Chalon, he was loaned to Saint-Quentin BB of the LNB Pro B and led the league in scoring in the 2020–21 season. After a season with the New Zealand Breakers in the Australian NBL, he was drafted by the Indiana Pacers with the 58th overall pick in the 2022 NBA draft.
Besson with Saint-Quentin BB in 2021 | |
| No. 25 – Pallacanestro Varese | |
|---|---|
| Position | Shooting guard / point guard |
| League | LBA |
| Personal information | |
| Born | 26 April 2001 Angers, France |
| Listed height | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) |
| Listed weight | 196 lb (89 kg) |
| Career information | |
| NBA draft | 2022: 2nd round, 58th overall pick |
| Selected by the Indiana Pacers | |
| Playing career | 2018–present |
| Career history | |
| 2018–2021 | Élan Chalon |
| 2020–2021 | →Saint-Quentin BB |
| 2021–2022 | New Zealand Breakers |
| 2022–2023 | Metropolitans 92 |
| 2023–2024 | FMP Meridian |
| 2024–present | Openjobmetis Varese |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
| Stats at Basketball-Reference.com | |
Early life and career edit
Besson was born in Angers, France.[1] He grew up in the Côte d'Azur town of Bandol.[2] He started his youth basketball career in 2016 as a member of the Antibes Sharks.[1] He averaged 5.1 points in 15 games with the Under 21 team during the 2016–17 season.[3] He joined Élan Chalon in 2017 and played for the Under 21 team. In 27 games during the 2017–18 season, he averaged 10.2 points, 3.6 rebounds, 1.1 assists, and 1.0 steals per game.[3]
Professional career edit
Élan Chalon (2018–2021) edit
Between 2018 and 2020, Besson was a member of the Élan Chalon senior squad. He played 14 games in the LNB Pro A over two seasons.[4] In the ProA U21 competition, he averaged 18.6 points, 5.8 rebounds, 4.0 assists, and 2.1 steals in 28 games during the 2018–19 season, and 26.0 points, 4.3 rebounds, 4.0 assists, and 2.0 steals in six games during the 2019–20 season.[3]
In June 2020, Besson signed a three-year contract with Élan Chalon and was subsequently loaned to Saint-Quentin BB of the LNB Pro B.[5] He led the league in scoring during the 2020–21 season with 19.5 points per game.[4] He also averaged 4.3 rebounds, 2.9 assists, and 1.0 steals in 26 games.[3][4] He was nominated for league MVP[6] and earned all-star five and best youngster.[7] His No. 25 jersey was later retired by Saint-Quentin BB.[8]
2021 off-season edit
Besson was courted by several European clubs during 2021, including Baskonia and ASVEL, and was in the running for the NBA draft.[9] He withdrew his name from the draft after being unable to participate in work-outs due to an ankle injury.[9] In August 2021, he was ranked by ESPN as the 35th top prospect for the 2022 NBA draft.[10]
New Zealand Breakers (2021–2022) edit
On 23 September 2021, Besson signed with the New Zealand Breakers of the Australian National Basketball League (NBL) for the 2021–22 season.[11][12] In his debut for the Breakers on 4 December, he scored 10 points in an 89–65 season-opening loss to the South East Melbourne Phoenix.[13] He scored 20 or more points in each of the next three games.[14][15] He had two 20-point games in March 2022.[14] Besson left the Breakers on 17 April 2022 in order to prepare for the NBA draft.[16][17] In 25 games, he averaged 13.9 points, 3.9 rebounds, and 2.5 assists per game.[14]
NBA draft and Summer League edit
Besson was selected with the 58th overall pick in the 2022 NBA draft by the Indiana Pacers. His draft rights were then immediately traded to the Milwaukee Bucks.[18] He joined the Bucks for the 2022 NBA Summer League.[19]
Metropolitans 92 (2022–2023) edit
On 13 August 2022, Besson signed with Metropolitans 92 of the LNB Pro A.[20] He was sidelined between 9 January and 16 May with a hip injury.[21][22] His minutes decreased after returning from injury,[22] as he helped the team reach the Pro A finals, where they lost 3–0 to Monaco. Besson played just five minutes from the bench in the game three defeat.[23] In 25 games, he averaged 9.2 points, 2.2 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game.[22]
Besson re-joined the Milwaukee Bucks for the 2023 NBA Summer League.[24]
FMP Meridian (2023–2024) edit
On 30 September 2023, Besson signed a two-year deal with FMP Meridian of the Basketball League of Serbia and the Adriatic League.[25] However, on 11 February 2024, he parted ways with the club.[26]
Openjobmetis Varese (2024–present) edit
On 26 February 2024, Besson signed with Openjobmetis Varese of the Lega Basket Serie A.[27]
National team career edit
In June 2021, Besson was called up to the French Under 20 national team ahead of the FIBA U20 European Challengers.[28] He ultimately did not play with the final team.[29][30]
Personal life edit
Besson's father, uncle, and grandfather have all played and coached professional basketball.[31][32] He has a sister named Jade.[2]
References edit
- ^ a b . NBA.com. Archived from the original on 9 July 2021.
- ^ a b Hinton, Marc (26 December 2021). "Hungry like the Wolf – Breakers standout Hugo Besson takes his best shot at the NBA". Stuff.co.nz. from the original on 25 December 2021.
- ^ a b c d "Hugo Besson". australiabasket.com. Retrieved 9 July 2021.
- ^ a b c . LNB.fr. Archived from the original on 9 July 2021.
- ^ Pantel-Jouve, Gabriel (19 June 2020). "HUGO BESSON SIGNE 3 ANS À L'ELAN CHALON ET SE FAIT PRÊTER À SAINT-QUENTIN". bebasket.fr (in French). from the original on 9 July 2021.
- ^ . LNB.fr (in French). 8 June 2021. Archived from the original on 9 July 2021.
- ^ . LNB.fr (in French). 23 June 2021. Archived from the original on 9 July 2021.
- ^ Rutard, Sacha (30 April 2022). "Vidéo : Saint-Quentin a retiré le maillot n°25 de Hugo Besson". basketeurope.com (in French). from the original on 30 April 2022. Retrieved 18 July 2022.
- ^ a b Pantel-Jouve, Gabriel (9 July 2021). "HUGO BESSON VA REJOINDRE OUSMANE DIENG AUX NEW ZEALAND BREAKERS". bebasket.fr (in French). from the original on 9 July 2021.
- ^ Santamaria, Liam (28 August 2021). "NBL22 Roster Watch". NBL.com.au. Retrieved 28 August 2021.
This week ESPN ranked Besson, who is already in Auckland, as the 35th top prospect for next year's draft.
- ^ "Breakers Add French Prospect Hugo Besson". NBL.com.au. 23 September 2021. Retrieved 23 September 2021.
- ^ Hinton, Marc (23 September 2021). "NZ Breakers announce French guard Hugo Besson as second import for NBL '22". Stuff.co.nz. from the original on 23 September 2021.
- ^ Hinton, Marc (4 December 2021). "NZ Breakers thumped by slick SEM Phoenix in disappointing NBL season opener". Stuff.co.nz. from the original on 4 December 2021.
- ^ a b c "Hugo Besson". NBL.com.au. from the original on 17 April 2022. Retrieved 17 April 2022.
- ^ Hinton, Marc (10 December 2021). "NZ Breakers battle hard but sink to 0-2 in NBL with second defeat to SEM Phoenix". Stuff.co.nz. from the original on 10 December 2021.
- ^ "Dieng, Besson Turn Attention to NBA Draft". NBL.com.au. 17 April 2022. from the original on 17 April 2022. Retrieved 17 April 2022.
- ^ "Breakers' Young Stars to Prepare for 2022 NBA Draft". nzbreakers.basketball. 17 April 2022. from the original on 17 April 2022. Retrieved 17 April 2022.
- ^ "Bucks' Hugo Besson: Taken No. 58 by Milwaukee". cbssports.com. 24 June 2022. from the original on 24 June 2022. Retrieved 24 June 2022.
- ^ "Milwaukee Bucks Announce 2022 Summer League Roster". NBA.com. 5 July 2022. from the original on 6 July 2022.
- ^ "Hugo Besson s'engage avec les Metropolitans 92". metropolitans92.com (in French). 13 August 2022. from the original on 17 August 2022. Retrieved 17 August 2022.
- ^ "Boulogne-Levallois : Hugo Besson opéré avec succès". basketeurope.com (in French). 9 February 2023. from the original on 16 June 2023. Retrieved 16 June 2023.
- ^ a b c "Hugo Besson". eurobasket.com. Retrieved 16 June 2023.
- ^ Woods, Dan (16 June 2023). "Championship Heartbreak for NBL23 Stars". NBL.com.au. from the original on 16 June 2023.
- ^ "Milwaukee Bucks announce roster for NBA 2K24 Summer League 2023". NBA.com. 30 June 2023. from the original on 30 June 2023. Retrieved 7 July 2023.
- ^ "Beson novi bek KK FMP SoccerBet". KKFMP.rs (in Serbian). 30 September 2023. Retrieved 1 October 2023.
- ^ "Igo Beson nije više prvotimac KK FMP SoccerBet". KKFMP.rs (in Serbian). 11 February 2024. Retrieved 18 February 2024.
- ^ "HUGO BESSON È UN NUOVO GIOCATORE DELLA PALLACANESTRO VARESE". PallacanestroVarese.it (in Italian). 26 February 2024. Retrieved 26 February 2024.
- ^ "Basket-ball. Matthieu Gauzin (Champagne Basket) et Hugo Besson (Saint-Quentin) appelés en équipe de France U20". lunion.fr (in French). 9 June 2021. from the original on 9 July 2021.
- ^ "France – FIBA U20 European Challengers 2021". fiba.basketball. Archived from the original on 3 October 2021. Retrieved 3 October 2021.
- ^ "Hugo Besson". fiba.basketball. from the original on 3 October 2021.
- ^ Laporte, Francis (20 July 2021). "Après une saison pleine en Pro B, Hugo Besson, petit-fils de Paul (JA Vichy), vient de signer en Nouvelle-Zélande". lamontagne.fr (in French). from the original on 20 July 2021. Retrieved 17 December 2021.
- ^ Hersz, Tom (17 December 2021). "Hugo Besson: No Pressure, Just a Game". NBL.com.au. Retrieved 17 December 2021.
External links edit
- ABA League profile
- 2023 LNB profile
- New Zealand Breakers profile
- 2022 NBA Draft profile
- NBADraft.net profile
- FIBA profile